Equipment: MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of a fluorescent confocal microscope at Truman State University

杜鲁门州立大学被授予获得荧光共聚焦显微镜的奖项，以实现尖端细胞和发育生物学研究。杜鲁门大学位于密苏里州柯克斯维尔，是一所以本科生为主的大学，也是该州唯一的公立文理大学。教师使用创新的教学策略和高影响力的研究经验来训练学生批判性思维和分析技能，这是他们在职业生涯和社区中取得成功所需的。荧光共聚焦显微镜是细胞和发育生物学中必不可少的工具，因为它能够快速提供厚的、有时是活的标本的光学切片。使用该仪器的研究和教学将培训数百名学生共焦显微镜，广泛覆盖到生物、化学、生物化学和分子生物学、健康与运动科学和护理学专业的本科生。通过杜鲁门现有的项目，当地的K-12教育工作者和学生也将有机会了解和使用荧光共聚焦显微镜，增加对这一强大仪器的认识。来自附近机构的更多用户将促进进一步的合作，并为杜鲁门州立大学对密苏里州东北部以及全州的文科和科学产生积极影响做出贡献。进行这项研究的教师使用五种不同的模式生物来研究控制动物发育、呼吸功能和植物的基本细胞和分子机制：细菌相互作用。具体地说，这个项目将确定两个基因在蛔虫发育胚胎中的作用，帮助我们了解果蝇的神经连接，允许详细分析大脑如何控制老鼠的呼吸，确定细菌如何与三叶草状植物形成有益关系，以及杀虫剂如何影响紫花苜蓿根上有益细菌的生长。荧光共聚焦显微镜获得的高细节图像将使学生和教职员工能够进一步发表演讲和研究文章，并促进科学知识的发展。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

An award is made to Truman State University to acquire a fluorescent confocal microscope to enable cutting-edge cell and developmental biology research. Located in Kirksville, Missouri, Truman is a predominantly undergraduate institution and the state’s only public liberal arts and sciences university. Faculty use innovative teaching strategies and high-impact research experiences to train students in the critical thinking and analytical skills they will need to be successful in their careers and communities. Fluorescent confocal microscopy is an essential tool in cell and developmental biology due to its ability to quickly provide optical sections through thick, sometimes living, specimens. The research and teaching using this instrument will train hundreds of students in confocal microscopy, broadly reaching undergraduates majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Health and Exercise Science, and Nursing. Through existing programs at Truman, local K-12 educators and students will also be given the opportunity to learn about and use fluorescent confocal microscopy, increasing the awareness of this powerful instrument. Additional users from a nearby institution will promote further collaborations and contribute to Truman State University’s positive impact on northeast Missouri and the liberal arts and sciences throughout the state. The faculty members conducting this research use five different model organisms to study fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms governing animal development, respiratory function, and plant:bacteria interactions. Specifically, this project will determine the roles of two genes in the developing embryos of a roundworm, aid in our understanding of the nerve connections in fruit flies, allow a detailed analysis of how the brain controls breathing in rats, determine how bacteria form beneficial relationships with a clover-like plant, and how pesticides affect the growth of beneficial bacteria on alfalfa roots. The highly detailed images obtained by the fluorescent confocal microscope will enable further presentations and research articles by students and faculty and advance scientific knowledge.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.